Director: Adam Rifkin
Screenplay: Carl V. Dupré
Starring: Edward Furlong, Giuseppe Andrews, James DeBello, Lin Shaye, Melanie Lynskey, Natasha Lyonne, Shannon Tweed
Country: USA, Canada
Running Time: 95 min
Year: 1999
BBFC Certificate: 15
Kiss were a band who were all about spectacle, putting on truly extravagant shows and thinking about their visual aesthetic and brand as much as or perhaps even more than, their music. So it made sense for them to try their hand at making movies.
Their first foray into filmmaking was 1978’s Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park, which the band hated. It was meant to get a theatrical release but ended up premiering on TV in the US and only getting a theatrical release in a few territories.
Flash forward a couple of decades after various lineup changes and reunions, and Kiss decided to give it another shot. The band were originally planning to make a special-effects-driven movie when Carl V. Dupré’s script for Detroit Rock City fell on their desk. At first, this low-key comedy was set aside with the idea of making it into a TV movie, but when the reality of producing a big-budget extravaganza alongside the usual recording and touring commitments hit home, the band decided to produce the smaller film instead, particularly as this was about a group of fans rather than the band themselves.
Detroit Rock City was poorly received by critics when it was released in 1999 and performed poorly at the box office. However, the audience members who did catch the film enjoyed it and, after repeated TV screenings in the US, it developed a following.
Now, the new kids on the block, Toy Robot, are releasing the film on dual format 4K UHD and Blu-ray. I thought it looked like fun, so I requested a screener, and my thoughts follow.
I’ll borrow Toy Robot’s press blurb to sum up the film’s narrative: “Four members of a high school KISS tribute band, including Hawk (Edward Furlong, TERMINATOR 2) and Jeremiah ‘Jam’ Bruce (Sam Huntington, FANBOYS), do everything they can to attend a concert in Detroit to see their idols after Jam’s mother finds and burns their tickets. To make it to the show, the rebellious teens must steal, cheat, strip and generally do whatever it takes…”
I probably talked too much about Kiss in my intro to this review, because this is really a coming-of-age teen comedy, rather than a Kiss movie. Or it could also be seen as a movie about fandom and the passion young people in particular can have for music or art.
It’s an ensemble piece that gives each of the four teens their own little ‘side quests’. These are reasonably varied, though all result in a little romance or sex. Lex’s (Giuseppe Andrews) arc is the least memorable of the quartet, whereas Jam’s (Sam Huntington) is probably the best developed, covering his difficult relationship with his tyrannical mother (played by the wonderful Lin Shaye).
Whilst it’s a boisterous affair on the surface, with some typically raunchy moments and profanity-laden banter, the film has a lot of heart. Also, despite much of the film feeling heightened, as though looking back at the story through rose-tinted glasses (aided by the period setting), the friendship and passion of the group of teens feel genuine.
The 70s setting seems very well captured. Most of the Kiss memorabilia in the film came from the band’s collection, so a lot of the items used were the ‘real thing’. Director Adam Rifkin also plays with retro techniques, such as split-screen, whilst throwing in some of his own playful visual touches.
These add to an infectious energy that flows throughout the film, particularly in the first half. It all ends quite simply and effectively, too, without adding any extra fluff. Reportedly, the first cut was close to three hours, but Rifkin and his editorial team thankfully brought it down to a lean 95 minutes.
Overall, Detroit Rock City doesn’t break the mould, but it’s a solid coming-of-age romp that looks great, has boundless energy and is a lot of fun to watch.
Film: 
Detroit Rock City is out on 14th December on Dual Format 4K UHD & Blu-Ray, released by Toy Robot. I watched the Blu-ray and the transfer is strong, with rich, natural colours and textures. I’ve used screengrabs throughout this review to give you an idea of how it looks, though these have been compressed. Audio is equally robust.
SPECIAL FEATURES
• NEW Interview with director Adam Rifkin
• NEW Interview with actress Lin Shaye
• NEW Interview with production designer Steve Hardie
• Audio commentary with director Adam Rifkin
• Audio commentary with KISS
• Audio commentary with cast and crew
• Miscellaneous S★★t documentary
• Look into the Sun featurette
• Cutting Room Floor
• Deleted Scenes
• Two Music Videos
• Theatrical Trailer
Toy Robot has loaded the discs with extras. There are a whopping three commentaries, for starters. One features Kiss, with Gene Simmons opening in an archival recording. This segment is a must-listen for fans of the band, as he discusses their history as well as their involvement in the film. It’s a little self-aggrandising, perhaps, but I found it interesting and engaging. Following Simmons, the rest of the group are literally called up and asked questions in what I believe are more recent recordings. These are great fun, with plenty of eye-opening stories about life in the band.
Another commentary features members of the cast and crew. This has a fun atmosphere, so it’s an enjoyable listen. It’s a bit messy, though, in places, with some weird editing decisions, mashing bits and pieces together. I think this is an intentional skit, as it feeds into the director’s commentary, too, and also allows James DeBello to goof around, but it didn’t work for me. These unusual diversions only occasionally get in the way of an otherwise lively track.
Finally, there’s a commentary with Adam Rifkin. This takes a more traditional route, with the director describing the production, its challenges and successes. It’s another strong track.
Whilst those are archival pieces, there are a trio of new interviews on the release. One is with production designer Steve Hardie. He talks about his career as a whole, as well as discussing his work on Detroit Rock City.
Lin Shaye is also interviewed. She talks about how she entered the industry and her approach to the character. It’s another fun piece.
Finally, there’s an interview with Adam Rifkin. This is great. He talks about how he got involved in the project and how it developed, before talking about the film’s initial box office failure.
There are around 15 minutes of deleted scenes. These tend to be extended rather than deleted, so there are no big new revelatory sequences to watch, but some scenes are given more room to breathe. A sequence with Edward Furlong and Shannon Tweed is surprisingly touching, for instance. Also included at the end of the clips is a scene from a ‘bonus film’ shot on set that they never finished.
There’s some ‘cutting room floor’ footage too, which looks at the recording of the four leads’ band performance at the start of the film. This is followed by 20 minutes of Kiss performing for the finale, though it’s the same track played a few times with different performance elements.
There’s also an 8-minute video diary called ‘Look into the Sun’. This is shot by James DeBello in quite a free-rolling, semi-surreal fashion.
In a similar but more traditional vein is ‘Miscellaneous Sh*t’, which is a 37-minute behind-the-scenes documentary. I enjoyed this a great deal. It’s got some nice fly-on-the-wall production footage and a number of interviews, some of which are serious, some of which are goof-offs, but in a good way.
There are also some music videos, trailers and galleries.
Speaking of trailers, Toy Robot have brought back trailers for forthcoming releases that automatically play when you put the disc in. Some people might find this annoying, but I love it. It reminds me of the video rental days.
So, Toy Robot have resurrected a minor cult classic and loaded it with hugely enjoyable extras. Fans should certainly pick it up.
Disc/Package: